Greetings To All,

     This card is rather late - terribly sorry - They changed the e-mail
server late last Friday and I was unable to receive or send e-mail until
late Tuesday( Which I didn't know on Monday). I was out sick Wednesday and
Thursday - so I am just now resending the bounced messages. Alas this
bounced - but better late than never. History of the Holiday follows.

                                 Brightest Blessings
                                        Trisha and Amber


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Passover: History and Meaning of Freedom in Faith
Passover celebrates the Jewish people's freedom from Egyptian bondage that
took place over 3,000 years ago, as told in the biblical Book of Exodus.
Under the reign of Pharaoh Rameses II, the Jewish leader Moses led his
people out of Egypt after a series of 10 plagues that Moses warned the
Pharaoh would devastate his people, if he refused to let them go. After each
plague, the Pharaoh agreed to let the Hebrews go, but the Pharaoh soon
changed his mind and continued to hold the Hebrews as slaves. Finally, after
the 10th plague, the Pharoah let the Hebrews go for good. However, after the
Hebrews left in a hurry, in fact so quickly that they did not have time to
bake any bread for the trip to Canaan, and instead baked unleavened bread,
called Matzah. The Pharaoh, being very fickle, changed his mind and sent his
army into the Sinai desert after the Hebrews. The Hebrews had been wandering
for 40 days and 40 nights down the Sinai peninsula until they reached the
Red Sea. When they saw the Egyptian army fast approaching toward them, they
called out in despair to Moses. Fortunately, g-d intervened and commanded
Moses to strike his staff on the waters of the Red Sea creating a rift of
land between the waves, enabling the Jews to cross over the Red Sea to
safety on the other side. G-d then commanded Moses to strike the waters of
the Red Sea again, just as the Egyptian army followed them through the
parted Red Sea. The waters came together again, drowning the entire Egyptian
army and the Hebrews were saved.

While the Hebrews were in Egypt as slaves, building cities at the hands of
cruel taskmasters, the Pharaoh noticed that their population was becoming
too numerous for his comfort. He then decreed that the first born male of
every Hebrew family be put to death, in order to reduce this population
threat. G-d then instructed Moses to tell the Hebrews to spread the blood of
a lamb on the doorposts of each Hebrew home, so that the Angel of Death
would 'pass over' the Hebrew homes, and instead slay the first-born male of
every Egyptian family. The Hebrews were saved from this tragedy, but
nonetheless were ordered by g-d to remember to say prayers for the slain
Egyptian sons and later on, the drowned Egyptian army.

Since the time of Jewish freedom from Egyptian slavery, Jews have celebrated
this historical event by having a feast called the 'Seder'. The word 'Seder'
means 'order' and refers to the order of historical events recalled in the
Passover meal as well as the meal itself. The story of Passover is read from
a book called the 'Haggadah'. While the main story of Passover is read by
Jews the world over, local customs and traditions have changed over time, so
that the festival has been adapted to reflect the life and routine of
individual communities. This is why the festival of Passover is celebrated
differently in Tunisia than in Canada.
Passover is celebrated for 8 days (7 for Reform Jews), and always begins on
the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan.

There are 7 main symbolic foods on the Seder table that remind the Jewish
people of their time of slavery in Egypt. This Seder plate shown below
displays in Hebrew the names of each of the foods.

The 7 symbolic foods of Passover are:
1. Matzah: Unleavened bread similar to a cracker and symbolizes the Hebrews'
slavery in Egypt. When the Hebrews were hastily preparing to leave Egypt,
they had no time to bake leavened bread and instead baked the unleavened
bread known as matzah. According to tradition, the original matzah was baked
in 18 minutes.

2. Haroseth: A mixture of crushed nuts, apples, cinnamon, and honey, which
symbolizes the mortar the Hebrew slaves in Egypt used in constructing
buildings for the Pharaoh.
3. Egg: A hard-boiled egg is used to symbolize life and rebirth.
4. Salt Water: The egg is dipped in salt water which symbolizes both the
tears of oppression as well as of joy in freedom.
5. Maror: This is very bitter horse-radish that symbolizes the hardships of
slavery. It is very strong. I mean it. It makes my face red, my eyes tear
and clears my sinuses!!!
6. Karpas: This is a mixture of boiled potatoes or radishes, and parsley
which is dipped in salt water and symbolizes the undernourishment of the
Hebrew slaves, as well as the new Spring season.
7. Z'roah: This piece of meat, sometimes represented as a shankbone,
symbolizes the Paschal lamb and refers to g-d's rescuing of the Hebrews from
Egyptian slavery.

The Passover seder not only symbolizes a Feast of Freedom from slavery, it
also represents a reminder of gratitude for maintaining faith in one's
beliefs. The leader of the seder sits at the head of the table, and then
washes his/her hands to symbolize a new beginning or 'passing over' from
slavery to freedom. The traditional Kiddush is recited by the leader of the
seder, and involves the blessing over wine to g-d for having been taught the
lesson of Passover, and its meaning of faith in one's beliefs. The matzah is
broken into two pieces, not of the same size, and this splitting represents
the parting of the Red Sea. The larger portion is called the Afikomen and is
placed under a napkin and the smaller portion is put between the other
matzot. This is followed by an announcement from the seder leader to people
at the seder table to join around, and have a piece of the Matzah, also
known as 'the bread of affliction'.

The Four Questions
Traditionally given to the youngest person at the seder table(usually the
youngest child) to read aloud, the Four Questions are a short but complete
overview of the story of Passover told in the Haggadah, or book of Passover,
which is given to each person at the table. It illustrates the uniqueness of
the Passover holiday, as compared to other times of the year.

The Four Children
The Four Children represent different methods of reading the Passover story
to people with different types of personal attributes. One child is wise,
another is slow, still another is wicked, and the final one is silent. The
reciting of the story of Passover to match the different abilities of
various people, is also a reflection of the flexibility inherent in freedom,
as opposed to the rigidity of slavery.

Passover in Songs
There are many happy songs that are sung in joyous reminder of having been
released from bondage. The most famous song is the melody 'Dayeynu', which
records the many ways that g-d sided with the Hebrews. At the end of each
mention of g-d's favours, the word 'Dayeynu' is sung, meaning 'it was
enough'.
The people at the Passover table then eat the symbolic foods, including two
pieces of matzah surrounding the Maror mixture, called 'Hillel's Sandwich'.
After these rituals are finished, the complete dinner is then served. People
at the table now eat while realizing that just as they were hungry waiting
for the meal to begin, they could imagine in just a small way, what it was
like for the Hebrews to experience the hardship of slavery and hunger. After
the meal, the Afikomen is eaten, although there is a tradition in some
households that the Afikomen is hidden prior to the start of the meal, and
that the children look for it once the meal is finished. The child who finds
it gets a chocolate coin or other prize.

The Prophet Elijah and Passover
The closing of the Passover seder is highlighted by the 'Redemption Theme',
as well as a reminder that the joyous festival of Passover is to be shared
with the less fortunate. The Prophet Elijah, symbol of the humble wayfarer,
is invited to enter the home through the symbolic opening of a door to the
house. The Cup of Elijah, filled with wine, and represented in the left
border of this web page, is confirmation of the hope of Elijah's arrival
into the house. After opening the door for Elijah followed by a small period
of time waiting for him, the Passover seder service is finalized by the
selection of Psalms, or Songs of Praise, known as the 'Hallel'. The Passover
dinner is ended with a drink of wine. All foods and drinks served at the
Passover meal carry a significant symbolic meaning and weight on the guests'
mind and the recital of the Passover story and its rituals serve to remind
the person of his/her importance, enabling the person to be aware of
gratitude and, just as important, widen an individual's perspective of
himself/herself in relation to his/her fellow human beings. Passover carries
a sense of humbleness to the self, placing one's frame of mind in a more
balanced proportion relative to one's immediate surroundings and to the
universe as a whole. Self-centeredness can magnify one's view of the world
to the point where one can only see oneself more than one can see one's
environment. The Feast (and Feat) of Freedom, called Passover, is a shining
example of a meaningful story showing g-d's intent to convey a psychological
balance between the Hebrews' self-concerns and the concerns of their
enemies, the Egyptians, as g-d reminds the Hebrews to pray for the fallen
Egyptian army and the slain first-borns of the Egyptian families by
declaring to the Hebrews that 'the Egyptians are my creation as well'. Thus,
Passover's concept of personal and collective freedom is not only a cause
for celebration, but a strong lesson in the value of proportion and balance
in how a person should conduct oneself or a group should conduct itself in
relation to other human beings. Shalom!
A toast to all, in Hebrew:
L'Chayim! (To life!)L'Chayim! (To life!)